It was good to see long time SABCC member Jeff Hearndon at the Harbor Freight Tools event. Like the rest of us, Jeff was looking for good deals on tools and accessories for his own projects. Those of you who know Jeff probably associate him with some very nice Triumph TRs - especially his green TR3.
It turns out that Jeff is the recent buyer of a 1970 Jaguar E-Type roadster that is in need of restoration. Like the '69 coupe that Richard Cunningham and I bought last year, Jeff's is also a victim of Hurricane Katrina. Although it suffered from the ravages of the storm, it is a low mileage car having been laid up for many years.
Jeff is working on the car with the help of his twin sons. It looks like it's going to be fun and educational project.
Through the efforts of SABCC's own Alan McDonald, the club had a free run for an hour at Harbor Freight Tools in Mobile.
Alan is a part time employee of Harbor Freight and made arrangements to have a extra shopping hour after the store's usual closing time. From 7:00 PM until 8:00PM, the store was filled with SABCC'ers snapping up bargains. The folks at Harbor Freight even gave away a set of screwdrivers as an extra thanks to everyone there. We had a great turnout and the staff on duty that night was friendly and helpful. Assistant Manager Lamont Reed got into the spirit of things by trying on a classic Mini for size. Yep, he fit.
Since this was an SABCC event, you can bet food was involved; most of the bargain hunters worked up an appetite for pizza and the group retired to the local Pizza Hut to see to a bite to eat.
Thanks Harbor Freight for hosting the first ever SABCC Night at Harbor Freight!
Yes, BL actually bought air time to advertise the cars we love. I found this commercial while trolling YouTube. It really takes me back to a more simple time in life. I hope you enjoy the video, too.
A new land speed record has been set - once again by a team from the UK. This time the motive force is not jet engines, diesel power or steam. Its the wind.
Called Greenbird, it was developed by English engineer Richard Jenkins and private 'green' electricity supplier, Ecotricity. On March 26 in a dry lakebed in California, the craft broke the world land speed record for wind-powered vehicles by more than 10 miles an hour, setting the new record at 126.2 mph. Greenbird uses a solid, vertical sail shaped like an aircraft wing to capture the wind. The craft's unique low-drag design, coupled with the power of "apparent wind" (a combination of true wind and the wind force created by forward motion), allows it to travel at up to five times the true wind speed.
It's a graceful thing to look at, but like most other LSR vehicles, not really practical for everyday driving.
You may remember reading an entry is this humble blog about my brother's efforts to get his '76 MGB on the road after its lengthy slumber. I am pleased to report that it is not only running but it is drivable. It was treated to a fluids change, new fuel tank, new tires, electronic ignition, etc.
I drove it Saturday and it drives as nicely as it ever did.
The Mini has not been well lately. It seems that it somehow ingested air in the brake lines during the trip down to St. John's Lawn Party and I've been both too busy and too sorry to go into the garage to look into it. I had a blessed week off work and Richard Cunningham offered to help out. We adjusted and bled stoppers. They worked great and I drove down to his garage to do a couple of other things to it, like mount my new/old 1973 Alabama license plate. While we were there, we decided to look into the bleed issue again to make sure that we got all the air out. While we were doing the 'pump-bleed' thing, a bleed nipple stripped the threads out of the wheel cylinder. So, the old girl is sitting quietly in Daphne waiting on a new (and hopefully better) wheel cylinder to arrive from Nevada.
Update - It appears that the vendor upgraded my shipping to Priority Mail. Mighty decent of them.
I like hot dogs as much as the next guy, and I've been known to spring for the 'premium' brands when I feel a little flush. I'm not sure that I can buy Oscar Meyer any more due to the horror visited upon an innocent MINI. That's right ladies and gents the new 2009 Wienermobile is based on a MINI Cooper S.
What happened to the motorhome and truck chassis used in years past? By golly, when I think of the famous Wienermobile, I think of the bigguns. Give me a bun length hot dog, please.
What is it about British straight six engines that sound so good? Similarly sized American sixes make think of pickup trucks. There's nothing to compare to the sound of a big Healey, a TR6, MGC or the sublime E-Type. Yes, British four cylinders have their own distinct sound, too but the sixes are really sweet.
Maybe one day the Gods of Finance will smile on meand I'll have my own hot six.
It was good to see long time SABCC member Jeff Hearndon at the Harbor Freight Tools event. Like the rest of us, Jeff was looking for good deals on tools and accessories for his own projects. Those of you who know Jeff probably associate him with some very nice Triumph TRs - especially his green TR3.
